Lynnette Horn, artist

Tag Archives: flower

You know how when you are done painting for the day, the painting doesn’t leave you. It’s still on your mind even when you sleep. Well that was me yesterday. I kept looking at this Contemporary Rose and thinking something’s not right. I had already decided to extend the shadow farther out away from the rose in the lower left corner, but I was using Phthlalo Blue, which is pretty intense for fading out. And as beautiful a color as it is, I found it competing with the rose. By morning I decided to cool it down with a brush mix of Ultramarine Blue and Carbon Black. Ultramarine Blue is less saturated and, at least for me, easier to fade out for an extended shadow. It has the added bonus of being cooler than Phthlalo Blue.

I don’t think it is as distracting from the main attraction now. And I am happier with it. I didn’t remove the Phthlalo Blue, but glazed over it to cool it down.

Today, I also went back to clean edges and add a little more definition between petals. For the most part I used Quinacridone Violet for this. While doing this, I danced around the rose, adding emphasis to small details here and there. I don’t think the average person would notice the difference, but for me these small touches make the rose look more realistic and complete.

All in all, today’s tweaks took about an hour. Really I feel like I can piddle and piddle with it until the cows come home, but there comes a time when an inner voice sets off an alarm, “Stand away from the canvas….eeeeoooo, eeeeoooo (siren)…stand away from the canvas!” I’ve learned the hard way how important it is to obey that alarm after many overworked paintings. So this is the final photo.

All that is left is signing, sealing and varnishing. Now that you’ve seen the final product, let me know if you would be interested in a painting pattern for this. What I’ve shared here is a general summary of the painting process. But a painting pattern would include the line drawing, step by step instructions and photos (more than here) along with tips to achieve the same look.

I had an opportunity to get back to my Contemporary Rose, today. I never know on Al’s days off if painting is going to be an option. But today, he busied himself loading new voice recognition software onto his computer while I painted. I think I am nearing completion of my rose.

What I did today:
First, I deepened the Quinacridone Violet glaze on most, but not all of the petals’ edges. This balanced the yellows, so they don’t seem too intense.

Next, I darkened the center with DecoArt Traditions Raw Umber, and then Added stamen in a mix of Raw Umber and Opaque White. Once dry I added an Indian Yellow glaze over them and dotted the stamen with Carbon Black.

I pushed back the bottom three petals by glazing over them with a thinned coat of Blue Gray. While I still had Blue Gray on my brush, I looked for little triangles between petals and where petals curled under to add more shadows, creating better definition and dimension.

Next I highlighted various petals with Opaque White. Of course, adding my lightest light next to my darkest dark in the center where I want the most interest.

The last thing I did today is add a sit down shadow in Phthalo Blue. Then I added a thin line in a mix of Phthalo Blue and Carbon Black right next to the petals and wherever I wanted shadow and softened.

I think I’m close to done. I was going to look at it once more tomorrow and see how I feel about it. I may push the shadow out farther away from the rose on the lower left side, opposite from the light source. I’m considering outlining the petals and even adding leaves, but then it wouldn’t be as contemporary as I first envisioned this rose. What do you think?

Today, I set up downstairs in the breakfast room of our hotel to paint while Al was sleeping (remember–nightshift). I don’t have to use the crutches anymore so I can actually carry things again. It seems like such a luxury now. So anyway I got started on the glazes for my Contemporary Rose.

First, I dressed the canvas in extender and thinned Warm White with a touch of extender also. I painted this over the petals to help blend the shading a bit better. Because I used extender I could still see the grisaille. Once it was dry I started in the center and worked my way out with glazes.

My darkest glaze is DecoArt Traditions Deep Yellow. As you can see in the painting I used this in the center and around the base of the center petals. Next came Indian Yellow, which is an orangey transparent yellow. My last glaze from this hue is Hansa Yellow. From the looks of it I really poured on the glaze, but actually I took my time applying layer upon layer of very thin glaze to build up the color.

Next came Quinacradone Violet for the pink glaze. Each petal was painted first with shape following strokes around the edges. Then I used a small mop to soften and pull in towards the base of the petal. In a later layer, I went back through to add lines and irregularities along the edges.

There is still a lot to be done with glazes, additional details and anchoring the rose on the background. So stay tuned…